More than four years after her disappearance, Madeleine McCann is still missing despite one of the most intensive missing-person searches ever. Global News takes a look back at the events surrounding the case:

Madeleine went missing on May 3, 2007 from a Portuguese villa while her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, had dinner with seven friends at a nearby restaurant.

Her parents said they checked frequently on their three children sleeping that night in the apartment in the town of Praia da Luz in the Algarve region. Kate McCann reportedly went to check on the children at 10 p.m. to find Madeleine had disappeared.

Portuguese police initially believed Madeleine wandered off, but several days later, said they had evidence she had been abducted. The girl went missing nine days before her fourth birthday.

The case captured the public’s attention, and celebrities spoke out about the case. David Beckham, the Pope and J.K Rowling appealed for the girl’s safe return.

Portuguese police first investigated Robert Murat, a British man who lived close to the complex where Madeleine disappeared. Murat was named as a suspect, and police questioned him and searched his home.

Portuguese media reports revealed that blood was found in the room where the girl went missing, but it was later determined not to be Madeleine’s.

Public sympathy waned as various theories emerged involving the girl’s parents. The McCanns were criticized for leaving their three children (Madeleine and her 2-year-old twin siblings Sean and Amelie) alone in the room, choosing not to use the babysitting service offered by the resort.

Some media reports alleged that the group drank up to 14 bottles of wine the night Madeleine disappeared and that, while the couple claims the children were checked on every half hour, the checks were more infrequent.

On September 7, Portuguese police officially named the McCanns as suspects and questioned Kate McCann for the second day in a row. The couple broke their vow not to return home without Madeleine, and left Portugal for England.

News leaked to the public the next day that the girl’s DNA was found in the trunk of a car rented by her parents 25 days after she went missing, prompting Portuguese police chief Alipio Ribeiro to publicly state that the DNA tests on the car were inconclusive.

Jane Tanner, a friend of the McCanns, said she saw a man with long hair leaving the resort complex carrying a child, and the girl’s parents released a sketch of the man in October 2007.

The following April, the couple’s first police interviews were leaked to the public. The interviews revealed that the morning before Madeleine went missing, she asked her mother, “Mummy, why didn’t you come when we were crying last night?”

The question reportedly prompted Kate and Gerry McCann to discuss how they would watch their children more closely at night.

By July 2008, Portuguese authorities had closed their investigation, and were no longer considering the parents or Murat as suspects. They released thousands of pages of evidence from the case, including a number of reported sightings of the girl.

Private investigators working for the McCanns began investigating a British man named Raymond Hewlett, a known pedophile who was staying about an hour away from the resort where Madeleine disappeared.

Hewlett was tracked to a hospital in Germany where he was undergoing treatment for throat cancer. Before being discharged from hospital, he denied having ever seen the girl other than on television.

In a May 2009 interview with talk show host Oprah Winfrey, the Kate and Gerry McCanns said they believe their daughter is still alive and will be found.

“I go in (the room) about twice a day to talk to her, just to say hello really ... tell her that we're going to do everything we can to find her,” Kate said.

On August 6, 2009, private detectives released a sketch of a woman whom they believe might have information about Madeleine.

The woman, a “Victoria Beckham lookalike,” reportedly had an Australian accent and was spotted by two British men in Barcelona, Spain, three days after the girl disappeared in Portugal.

The woman reportedly spoke with one of the men, but investigators refused to give any details on the content of the conversation.

On September 23, 2009, Kate McCann retuned to Lisbon for the first time since her daughter’s disappearance in 2009.

Kate and Gerry McCann met with their lawyers to provide an update on the search for Madeleine. Their trip was brief. The McCanns also met with a local public relations agency to discuss a campaign to turn public favour back onside with the McCanns, who believe the Portuguese public was not forthcoming with information on Madeleine.

On November 3, 2009, UK police released a 60-second video of how Madeleine McCann might look now, aged six-years-old.

The video was released in seven languages and featured film footage of Madeleine and digitally enhanced images of what the young girl could look like, more than two years after she went missing.

The photos show Madeleine fair-skinned with shoulder length blonde hair, as well as tanned with darker hair.

Days later, the UK newspaper, the Daily Mirror, reports a businessman spotted a girl matching Madeleine’s description outside a shopping mall in Dubai. The man said he saw a girl who looked like the missing McCann with a man and two women.

In November 2010, the McCanns announced they’re writing a book about their daughter’s disappearance. Proceeds from the sale of the book, Maddie, will go toward funding a private investigation into the missing girl’s case.

In December 2010, the McCanns issued a Christmas appeal for help in the search for Madeleine. Kate and Gerry were due in Portugal later in the month ahead of a court case suing a former Portugeue investigator who wrote a contentious expose on the case of the missing girl.

In The Truth of the Lie, author Goncalo Amaral questions the McCann’s account of the evening their daughter disappeared. Amaral also claims Madeleine is dead.

In May 2011, the McCanns ask British Prime Minister David Cameron to launch an independent investigation into the disappearance of their daughter.

In an open letter in the Sun newspaper published on Madeleine’s 8th birthday, around the fourth anniversary of her disappearance, Kate and Gerry McCann urged the prime minister to secure a formal inquiry.

"It's not right that a young, vulnerable British citizen has essentially been given up on," the letter stated.

The McCanns told Cameron that "the benefits of pooling together different bits of evidence can be enormous" in the search for missing Madeleine.

On July 28, 2011, a British tourist in India claims she saw Madeleine in a market in the northern city of Leh. The tourist says the child was with a French woman and a Belgian man.

The McCanns said their private investigator is looking into the claims, but downplayed the credibility of the report. DNA testing was underway to determine if the sighting was in fact Madeleine.

Her parents said they checked frequently on their three children sleeping that night in the apartment in the town of Praia da Luz in the Algarve region. Kate McCann reportedly went to check on the children at 10 p.m. to find Madeleine had disappeared.

From the the statements, GM disappeared for 30 minutes and soon as he came back KM left almost straight away to discover Maddie had gone...go figure

Portuguese police initially believed Madeleine wandered off, but several days later, said they had evidence she had been abducted. The girl went missing nine days before her fourth birthday.

Yes death smells on all parts of the aaprtment and KM clothes is no coincidence

Public sympathy waned as various theories emerged involving the girl’s parents. The McCanns were criticized for leaving their three children (Madeleine and her 2-year-old twin siblings Sean and Amelie) alone in the room, choosing not to use the babysitting service offered by the resort.

Knowing that Maddie had said in the morning 'why didn't you come when we cried"....what parent on earth (apart form the McScams) would go out without using at the very least the free babysitting service or walkie talkies..If when on seeing Maddie had gone they knew that she had been abducted because of what Maddie said then it is obviously on the mind so why leave her in an unlocked room where you can't see the apartment properly. And why knwoing she had disappeared leave the twins all alone to be abducted too!

Some media reports alleged that the group drank up to 14 bottles of wine the night Madeleine disappeared and that, while the couple claims the children were checked on every half hour, the checks were more infrequent.

The statements say 9 bottles of wine, plus what they drank at the apartment..and Kate makes the point that it was New Zealand wine. If only she had paid this amount of attention to her daughter!

On September 7, Portuguese police officially named the McCanns as suspects and questioned Kate McCann for the second day in a row. The couple broke their vow not to return home without Madeleine, and left Portugal for England.

They returned to England....refused to answer questions to the Pl and went to meet the pope and lunch at the white house

News leaked to the public the next day that the girl’s DNA was found in the trunk of a car rented by her parents 25 days after she went missing, prompting Portuguese police chief Alipio Ribeiro to publicly state that the DNA tests on the car were inconclusive.

they left the trunk of the car open for a whole week...witness. if it was a fish and nappies smell then this would be gone in a day

Jane Tanner, a friend of the McCanns, said she saw a man with long hair leaving the resort complex carrying a child, and the girl’s parents released a sketch of the man in October 2007.

on the 3rd attempt she got a sketch...from just seeing a figure, to seeing the clothes, to seeing his face and all the details...though it took a year to establish exactly what this figure looked like! Funny nobody else saw him except a McScam friend....what a coincidence..Not even Jeremy saw him or Jane Tanner 10 yards away! And the a family on the other side of town saw GM carrying a child yet this is quashed!!

The following April, the couple’s first police interviews were leaked to the public. The interviews revealed that the morning before Madeleine went missing, she asked her mother, “Mummy, why didn’t you come when we were crying last night?” The question reportedly prompted Kate and Gerry McCann to discuss how they would watch their children more closely at night.

leaving them all alone in an unlocked room with no babysitter or walkie talkies...all free services offered to them which they refused!

“I go in (the room) about twice a day to talk to her, just to say hello really ... tell her that we're going to do everything we can to find her,” Kate said.

And in the Channel 5 interview all you could say was 'Hold on"! What sort of message is that to your missing daughter!

On August 6, 2009, private detectives released a sketch of a woman whom they believe might have information about Madeleine.

red herring

On September 23, 2009, Kate McCann retuned to Lisbon for the first time since her daughter’s disappearance in 2009.

Didn;t she say she would never leave until they found Maddie...sorry she had an appointment at the white house that was more important

Kate and Gerry McCann met with their lawyers to provide an update on the search for Madeleine. Their trip was brief. The McCanns also met with a local public relations agency to discuss a campaign to turn public favour back onside with the McCanns, who believe the Portuguese public was not forthcoming with information on Madeleine.

A campaign to get more funds and pay the mortgage. not to actually do anything to find Maddie

On November 3, 2009, UK police released a 60-second video of how Madeleine McCann might look now, aged six-years-old.

just show the eye and birth mark. No many kids have both these marks

The video was released in seven languages and featured film footage of Madeleine and digitally enhanced images of what the young girl could look like, more than two years after she went missing.

More countries means more money for the fund and the mortgagee and holiday trips around the world

The photos show Madeleine fair-skinned with shoulder length blonde hair, as well as tanned with darker hair.

All photos are photoshopped. It took 3 weeks to release an up-to-date photo of Maddie. Hardly trying to find her. the one that was released came on a poster 2 hours after they discovered Maddie had gone missing and this photo was an old one! Did they really want people to find her?

In November 2010, the McCanns announced they’re writing a book about their daughter’s disappearance. Proceeds from the sale of the book, Maddie, will go toward funding a private investigation into the missing girl’s case.

the whole book was about kate, her problems, her sex life. Nothing about Maddie

In December 2010, the McCanns issued a Christmas appeal for help in the search for Madeleine. Kate and Gerry were due in Portugal later in the month ahead of a court case suing a former Portugeue investigator who wrote a contentious expose on the case of the missing girl.

he was getting too close to the truth

In The Truth of the Lie, author Goncalo Amaral questions the McCann’s account of the evening their daughter disappeared. Amaral also claims Madeleine is dead.

So does the rest of the world who have read all the facts

In May 2011, the McCanns ask British Prime Minister David Cameron to launch an independent investigation into the disappearance of their daughter.

he is as corrupt as Gordon Brown. Chipping Norton Set. Hacking Scandal says it all. Theresa May was not sure and Cameron overided her

In an open letter in the Sun newspaper published on Madeleine’s 8th birthday, around the fourth anniversary of her disappearance, Kate and Gerry McCann urged the prime minister to secure a formal inquiry.

Going against Theresa May's advice

"It's not right that a young, vulnerable British citizen has essentially been given up on," the letter stated.

what about the thousands of others who have their child missing....why are the McScams so special to get this very special privilege?

The McCanns told Cameron that "the benefits of pooling together different bits of evidence can be enormous" in the search for missing Madeleine.

On July 28, 2011, a British tourist in India claims she saw Madeleine in a market in the northern city of Leh. The tourist says the child was with a French woman and a Belgian man.

Hoax story to get Maddie back in the limelight again before it is announced they were victims of phone hacking. Public sympathy means pounds for the fund and mortgage and going around the world high life paid

The McCanns said their private investigator is looking into the claims, but downplayed the credibility of the report. DNA testing was underway to determine if the sighting was in fact Madeleine.

Eddie and Keela alerted to items and places concerned with the McCanns - and importantly to no other items or places.

According to Eddie and Keela, the body of Madeleine McCann lay lifeless behind the sofa in Apartment 5a, clinging to the only thing from which she could derive any comfort; a soft toy called 'Cuddle cat'.

Kate's book 'madeleine', Page 219: "Did they really believe that a dog could smell the 'odour of death' three months later from a body that had been removed so swiftly?"

After forensic analysis of the 'Last Photo' there is little doubt now that the pool photo CANNOT POSSIBLY have been taken on the Thursday 3rd May, but most likely on the Sunday 29th April. So, where was Madeleine at lunchtime on Thursday?

John McCann:"This was terrible for them, Kate dressed Amelie in her sister's pyjamas and the baby said: "Maddy's jammies, where is Maddy?"Martin Roberts:"If Madeleine's pyjamas had not, in fact, been abducted then neither had Madeleine McCann."Dr Martin Roberts: A Nightwear Job

Death Toll in McCann Case

Gerry McCann called for an example to be made of 'trolls'. SKY reporter Martin Brunt doorstepped Brenda Leyland on 2 October 2014 after a 'Dossier' was handed in to Police by McCann supporters. She was then found dead in a Leicester hotel room the next day. Brenda paid the price.

Colin Sahlke died suddenly in mysterious circumstances with a significant amount of morphine in his system. At the Inquest the coroner said there was no evidence as to how he had come to take morphine, and no needle mark was found.Gerry McCann had met Sahlkebefore he helped with the search but did not show any concern for his death. Link

Ex-Met DCI Andy Redwood had a "revelation moment" on BBC1's Crimewatch on 14th October 2013 when he announced that Operation Grange had eliminated the Tanner sighting - which opened up the 'window' of opportunity' from 3 minutes to 45 minutes, in accordance with their remit, to allow the staged abduction to happen.

The 'SunOnline' journalist, Tracey Kandohla: "A McCann pal told The Sun Online: "Some of the savings have been siphoned off from the Find Maddie Fund into a fixed asset account, which financial experts have advised them to do. It can be used for purchases like buying a house, or building equipment."